- Kawasaki Heavy Industries unveiled CORLEO, a hydrogen-powered, rideable robotic horse, at the Osaka Kansai Expo. It mimics animal agility with AI-powered navigation and adaptive legs for off-road mobility.
- The robot's design borrows from nature, featuring wolf/horse-like hinged joints, shock-absorbing rear legs and cloven hooves for rugged terrain, while running on a clean 150cc hydrogen generator.
- CORLEO uses hydrogen fuel cells to generate electricity, emitting only water vapor. Its instrument panel displays fuel levels, navigation and ground projections for nighttime use.
- Reactions range from excitement over potential mobility benefits (e.g., disabled access) to skepticism, with critics calling it "vaporware" due to its early prototype stage and reliance on CGI in promotions.
- Kawasaki labels CORLEO a 2050 concept, raising doubts about hydrogen infrastructure readiness. Competitors are advancing smaller rideable robots, but Kawasaki's focus remains speculative for now.
Kawasaki Heavy Industries, a company best known for its motorcycles, unveiled a new rideable machine in the form of a hydrogen-powered robotic horse called CORLEO.
The Japanese firm introduced CORLEO on Friday, April 4, during the Osaka Kansai Expo as part of its Impulse to Move project. CORLEO promises to revolutionize off-road mobility by ditching wheels for legs, mimicking the agility of real animals.
The two-seater robotic horse is designed to gallop across rugged landscapes with the ease of a mountain goat. Unlike traditional vehicles, it relies on artificial intelligence (AI) to navigate, adjusting its path based on the rider's body movements. Kawasaki claims this creates a "reassuring sense of unity." (Related: Are hydrogen-powered freight trucks ready to roll out?)
The design borrows heavily from biology. Its legs mimic the hinged joints of wolves and horses, while its cloven "hooves" adapt to uneven terrain like rocky slopes or rubble fields. The rear legs swing independently, absorbing shock like a living creature. Even the stirrups are modeled after real saddles, ensuring stability.
Unlike a flesh-and-blood horse, CORLEO runs on a 150cc hydrogen generator, emitting nothing but water vapor. But is this bold vision of the future anything more than a flashy concept destined to gather dust?
Nature meets engineering with CORLEO – or is it an elaborate ruse?
Hydrogen power is central to Kawasaki's pitch. CORLEO's hydrogen system converts stored hydrogen into electricity, powering the robotic legs without fossil fuels. An instrument panel displays fuel levels and navigation paths and even projects markers onto the ground at night. It's a clever fusion of sustainability and sci-fi – assuming it ever leaves the concept stage.
Online, reactions split between awe and eye-rolls. Some hailed CORLEO as "true innovation," with disabled users envisioning newfound access to nature.
Others dismissed it as vaporware, noting the slick promo video was mostly CGI. One Reddit user bluntly called it a "late April Fool's joke." Kawasaki's prototype showcased at the expo could barely stand, let alone replicate the video's acrobatics.
Kawasaki admits CORLEO is a concept for 2050, not a product whose timeline raises eyebrows. By then, hydrogen infrastructure may or may not be widespread.
Competitors like Xiaopeng have already showcased rideable robot animals (albeit toy-sized), while other firms experiment with giant walking carriers. Meanwhile, Kawasaki's ALICE modular train system shared the expo spotlight, suggesting the company is hedging its bets.
CORLEO is undeniably imaginative, blending biomechanics, AI and clean energy into a single, wild package. But until Kawasaki proves it can move beyond renders and rigid expo displays, the robo-horse remains a tantalizing "what if." For now, the future of personal mobility still has four wheels – not four legs.
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